[HoosierRon]

Remember the whole Toyota/egg on your face debate...

Breaking rules not bad thing for Lutz

"The only things that were wrong with the EV1 (GM's first electric car) was that it was way too expensive to make; it was only a two-passenger; and the battery technology was not ready," Lutz said. "It was a noble effort, but it was a technological force job and at a time when nobody cared. We could not find more than 800 buyers for that thing no matter how hard we tried or no matter how much we dropped the price. Finally we had to lease them out."

Lutz cares about the electric car today, despite what his detractors say. And it's not PR spin.

He keeps a stack of laminated Chevrolet Volt pictures on his desk -- and not just the fancy exterior photos.

"That one is the battery," he says, handing me a picture that's about as exciting as, well, a picture of a battery.

The Volt, as we all know, is GM's green machine. The extended-range electric vehicle is being promised for delivery in 2010 and being road tested today. Spare yourself the late night spy photo stakeouts. The "Volt" is actually a late-model Chevy Malibu being used to test the powertrain.

"We've got the first car running (with lithium-ion batteries) ... and what the guys get on 'sightings' is a picture of an old Malibu with black wheels and a very long extension cord," he said chuckling at the thought.

We talked about the eco-extremists (my word, not his) and how out of touch they are with the reality of building a car today, especially the Volt.
"We have gasoline and 350 to 400 volts (of electricity) in the same vehicle and we have to be careful about it," he said.

We talked about how important it was for GM to restyle its vehicles because its previous fleet was boring and bland, and we talked about volcanoes on Caribbean islands -- surely not on the approved question list.
But that's the thing about Lutz, he doesn't abide by public relations plans.
He says what a lot of people think and what a lot of executives are afraid to say.

 

[Ambalanche]

That's what I absolutely LOVE about Lutz, he says what's on his mind and to hell with the PC crowd! So much for "Vaporware"!!

 

[tgagneguam]

I really do find Lutz's candor refreshing, especially as an executive of a Big Three automaker; I think it's for similar reasons why I liked John Rock. However, I think sometimes he could rein it in a bit. You know, balance.

 

[tamatt27]

Bob Lutz is my hero.

 

[Rocket 88]

Maybe I'm wrong, but I have no recollection of GM ever trying to sell the EV1. I remember it being only available for lease and getting one was like trying to win the lottery. Most of them went to celebrities and everone else went on long waiting lists.

I'm not knocking Lutz, who I think is great car man, but I'm skeptical he cares about electrics or Hybrids. If you follow what he has said, the doesn't sound like a supporter of either. I just think he realizes or accepts that GM needs these products to compete.

For example: "global warming is complete crock of Sh#@" and "hybrids make no economic sense" - Bob Lutz.

See below if you prefer the info from the source.

http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/02/13/gms-bob-lutz-global-warming-is-a-total-crock-of-sh-t/

 

[blkwrxsti]

Remember the whole Toyota/egg on your face debate...

The "egg on your face" was a direct quote from what Bob said earlier. This is old "news" that's already been reported by the NY Times, with far more detail and useful information :
http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/19/lutz-leaves-the-bunny-ears-at-home/

While I respect Manny Lopez for putting his phone number and e-mail on his articles:clap:, this is clearly a puff piece that reveals no new information and is meant to repair Lutz's image and ensure that the Detroit News will have access to him when the next big story hits (I'm guessing July)...

 

[I-Love-Pontiac]

I really do find Lutz's candor refreshing, especially as an executive of a Big Three automaker; I think it's for similar reasons why I liked John Rock. However, I think sometimes he could rein it in a bit. You know, balance.

No way. That's what makes Bob amazing.

 

[KillerMRK]

your z51 vette is giving us higher gas prices. thanks.

go japanese please.

Yes, because Toyota is the most fuel efficient automaker on the face of the earth. Its not like the 4Runner, Sequoia, FJ Cruiser, Tundra, and Tacoma have have poor gas mileage.... WHOOOPS.


The Malibu has better mileage than the Accord or Camry, the Cobalt has better highway mileage than the Corolla, The Enclave, Traverse, Outlook, and Acadia all have better fuel mileage than the Pilot, and the Highlander. Not to mention the Corvette still avoids the gas-guzzler tax.

I'm just gonna report every post you've made, troll.

 

[drew630]

your z51 vette is giving us higher gas prices. thanks.

go japanese please.

Yeah, your going to last long here.

 

[KillerMRK]

Yeah, your going to last long here.

He's been posting the same crap over and over again.

 

[blkwrxsti]

That said, I assume that Lutz's comments do a great deal to light a fire under the development team. Even though GM is chided for being 2 months late 3 months after the announcement was made, the fact is that they have a test vehicle on the road, and I'm glad they're finally getting some positive press out of it (even if it IS only in Detroit).

Most other executives are probably playing it safe - and their development teams may enjoy more breathing room...

 

[Ming]

We could not find more than 800 buyers for that thing no matter how hard we tried or no matter how much we dropped the price. Finally we had to lease them out."

Wasn't the car only offered in California and maybe one other state's Saturn showrooms? I don't recall it being available nationwide. I also don't recall GM making a big push to sell them.

It's like when the Silverado Hybrid first came out, only in a very few states, and to this day I don't think I've seen even one on the roads here in Texas (other than at an Auto Show), despite hearing from truck owning co-workers who wondered where they were and wanted to test drive one at the time.

Ah, here we go - old stuff:

WHY ISN'T THE EV1 AVAILABLE NATIONWIDE?

Electric vehicle technology is rapidly emerging and because of urgent air quality problems in California and Arizona, GM has limited the EV1's initial availability to those states. As manufacturing capacity increases and electric vehicles become cheaper to produce, they will hopefully be more widely available. GM is learning a lot about how to market an electric car along as well as dealing with the complexities of setting up charging infrastructure in California and Arizona. One other issue affecting first generation EV1's is the lead-acid battery pack which is less efficient in cold winter climates, making them more ideal for California's warmer weather. The generation 2 (1999) EV1's will be equipped with either Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries developed by GM Ovonic Battery Corp., or a new type of higher capacity lead acid batteries.

WHAT OTHER ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY VEHICLES IS GM WORKING ON?

Several new vehicles based on the EV1 platform have been announced by GM's Advanced Technology Vehicles division. Among them are a diesel/electric parallel hybrid, gas turbine/electric series hybrid, compressed natural gas low emission ICE, and fuel cell/electric powered EV1. A truck based on Chevrolet's S-10 pick-up is currently available to fleet buyers. For detailed information on GM's Advanced Technology Vehicle development and RealVideo clips from GM's 1998 Detroit Auto show presentation, check out EV World.

 

[jkennedy293]

Hopefully, there won't be too many issues with the batteries and development will continue unimpeded.

 

[jeep2c]

There were a couple EV1's leased to either GM or Delphi employees here in the Dayton area.

I know where one of the guys lived in Kettering who had one... you could see the car from the Frisbee Golf course.

 

[nadepalma]

Good thread. Though is comments about the EV1 are sure to stir up controversy. God knows that the documentary they put together against GM was pretty bad. Most folks think it was Big Oil in collusion with GM that was its downfall.

 

[383_torque]

When the EV-1 came out in 1996 the nationwide average price for regular unleaded was $1.25. In 1998, it dropped down below .95 cents for a few weeks.

If the Volt was on showroom floors tomorrow, I have to believe it would be the hottest selling car in the nation with waiting lists and markups. Hell, at $4.00/gallon, I am willing to get on a waiting list NOW!

The Volt needs to get to production sooner than 4th quarter 2010!!!

 

[tkrelston]

Wasn't the car only offered in California and maybe one other state's Saturn showrooms? I don't recall it being available nationwide. I also don't recall GM making a big push to sell them.

It's like when the Silverado Hybrid first came out, only in a very few states, and to this day I don't think I've seen even one on the roads here in Texas (other than at an Auto Show), despite hearing from truck owning co-workers who wondered where they were and wanted to test drive one at the time.

Ah, here we go - old stuff:

I’ve seen them(Silverado Hybrids) on dealer lots in Amarillo, unfortunately it was after they were out of production!

 

[tombalas]

The Volt needs to get to production sooner than 4th quarter 2010!!!

Better to test the battery and make sure it is reliable before putting it out on the market. GM doesn't need cars where the batteries start exploding.

 

[JBsZ06]

The EV1 was a cool vehicle.

The new Volt even more so.

Can't wait till GM releases it to the public.

Big win for GM. IMO

 

[WishIhadatruck]

I can't wait to see the Volt in production. Unfortunately since it will only be a 4 seater I'll have to wait for the technology to spread to a more family friendly vehicle since I have a family of 5. I hope the testing goes well and it launches when planned.

I don't recall them ever offering a purchase option on the EV1. I believe it was leased in Arizona (Pheonix area?) in addition to California.